


Rescue Me

by summerbutterfly



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Developing Friendships, Gen, M/M, Mentions of Blood, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 13:50:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15511257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/summerbutterfly/pseuds/summerbutterfly
Summary: Sha Gojyo is about 95% sure there is something going on with his new roommate.  He just needs to figure out what that something is.





	Rescue Me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [momijizukamori](https://archiveofourown.org/users/momijizukamori/gifts).



> Happy Parallels, momijizukamori! I hope this is to your liking. It was fun to hang out with these boys again, so thanks for putting them on your request list. I touched this last, so I take responsibility for any leftover typos. 
> 
> Thanks, as always, to my beta. She makes me get things done :).

On paper, roommates didn’t get much better than this: Cho Hakkai, 26, certified accountant, full-time, salaried job, and an international MBA from NYU. Fluent in Mandarin Chinese, French, and English. No arrest record, no pending warrants, not even a parking ticket. Clean, pet-free, and he even liked to cook. 

Sha Gojyo was willing to endure a lot, but he was more than willing to overlook anything for the chance to live with someone that liked to cook.

“But somehow…you still think he’s still creepy?” Yaone , his co-worker, leaned her elbows on the large, mahogany concierge’s desk between them. “Why?”

“Dunno,” Gojyo said with a shrug. “It’s not like I have a concrete reason. I mean, he showed up for his interview in a suit and tie, but then he offered me his move in deposit _in cash_. Who carries around $1500 in cash?”

“People who have just moved to the City who need a place to live and don’t want to run into trouble with electronic transfers from out-of-state bank accounts,” Yaone said. “It’s not that unusual.”

“Maybe. But there’s still something slightly off. I can’t put my finger on it, but somethings weird.”

“Maybe you’re just projecting. You’re associating sharing your space with bad memories. Your last roommate _did_ try to create a meth lab in the bathroom.”

“Can we not talk about Banri? I’m trying to forget that experience.” Gojyo checked his reflection in the shiny brass back of his nameplate, smoothing down his ever-present cowlick. “But then again, maybe dealing with Banri heightened my instincts. So that I can see when someone is exhibiting abnormal behaviors. I mean, he admitted he keeps really odd hours. And sometimes goes without sleep.”

“ _You_ keep really odd hours,” Yaone countered. “And I’m sure there have been plenty of nights you haven’t slept _at all_ in the last six months.”

“Yeah, but I keep weird hours because of work and sex. And I’m up front about that. This guy, he just…I dunno. He says he gets off at five, but he asked for an evening meeting with me, which got delayed back all the way until 9 p.m. Even with the the rush hour commute, public transit isn’t _that_ slow.”

Yaone shrugged. “I still think you’re projecting,” she said. “There could be all kinds of logical conditions at work here, and zero sketchy, extracurricular activities, but I could be wrong I guess. By the way, did you remember to book Mr. Thompson’s car for tomorrow? He’s got that casino thing in Jersey he’s attending.”

“Booked, confirmed, and paid for. Even got them to send Andre to drive.”

“What? How? Aren’t Tuesdays Andre’s day off?”

“Usually. But I guess Thompson just tips that well…”

“Uh, nice try. You agreed to go out with him, didn’t you?”

“Maybe.” Gojyo grinned. “Okay, fine. Yes. But let’s be real. It’s not like he’s been subtle about his massive crush on me. At this point, it would just be cruel to keep stringing along a man that handsome.”

Yaone sighed. “You’re such a slut,” she chided. “You know that, right?” 

“I do, but thank you,” Gojyo said. “You always say the sweetest things.”

***************

Gojyo had his date with Andre on Thursday. And Hakkai showed up the following night to move in, catching Gojyo off-guard and in the act of scrubbing down the kitchen counter in a valiant attempt to keep the corian from staining.

“Uh, hello?” Hakkai’s voice said. He nudged the door open with his foot, box in hand, and peered cautiously around the corner. “Mr. Sha? Are you in?”

Gojyo looked up. “Oh, hi,” he said. “Uh…wow. You’re here. Okay. Come on in. And call me Gojyo. Please.” 

Hakkai set the box down inside the foyer. “I’m sorry, Gojyo. Should I have called first?”

“No, no! It’s fine! You uh…brought your stuff?”

“Yes. I plan to move in tonight if that’s all right.”

“Yeah, yeah. No problem. I mean, I already gave you a key. And you work. So I wasn’t expecting you to show up in the middle of the day on a weekday or anything, I just…had I known you were coming tonight, I would have started cleaning earlier.” Gojyo tossed his soapy sponge in the sink and removed his yellow dishwashing gloves. “Do you need some help?”

“No.” Hakkai shook his head. “I don’t have much. Just a few boxes, an air mattress, and my suitcases.” 

“Really? You travel light.”

“Well, I’ve never been one to form attachments to material things.” Hakkai looked around. “And I used to travel so much for work, accumulating personal effects was out of the question. I’m in the far bedroom, correct?”

“Uh, yeah.” Gojyo said. “Right over there to the left. I cleaned the last of my old roommate’s junk out last weekend, so it should move-in ready.”

“Thank you,” Hakkai said. “I appreciate your thoughtfulness.”

“No problem. And really, if you need any help, just let me know.”

“Thank you, I will.”

With a polite nod, Hakkai disappeared into Gojyo’s second bedroom. Gojyo stared after him for a long moment, unsure of whether he should go back to cleaning. In all honesty, the corian was a lost cause at this point, but it was awkward standing in his kitchen with nothing to do. So in the end, he wound up loading the dishwasher while Hakkai transported his minimal possessions inside. And he was right. He didn’t need help. In two trips, he was done and standing by the door, looking as if he intended to leave again.

“I guess I’ll see you in the morning.” He had changed out of his business attire and into casual clothes, but the statement still caught Gojyo off-guard.

“Are you…leaving?” Gojyo asked. “You don’t have to…”

“Actually, I have something to attend to, so yes, I do. And I’ll probably be back fairly late. You said you’d be working mornings at the hotel through the end of the month?”

“Mostly mornings. Maybe a few mids, but I’m off of overnights for a while.”

“Then I’ll be sure to keep the noise down when I return.” Hakkai smiled. “Goodnight, Gojyo. Thank you for letting me move in on such short notice.”

“No problem,” Gojyo said as Hakkai headed out the door. “…goodnight.”

*******

“And just like that, he was gone,” Gojyo said, shaking his head. “Though he came back some time before I got up for work because there was a fresh pot of coffee on the counter.”

“Okay, so that might be a little weird.” Yaone tapped her chin thoughtfully. “You think he’s moonlighting somewhere or something?”

“He works for D&T. Do you _really_ think he needs a second income?”

“You never know, Gojyo. And maybe it’s a favor to someone. Maybe it has nothing to do with income at all.”

“That sounds so Mafia,” Gojyo said. “You think he’s Family?”

Yaone shot him some epic side-eye. “You said he was Taiwanese.”

“So? He could have married in!”

“And his father-in-law sends him out on hits in alone in a white long sleeve tee shirt and acid-washed jeans? I don’t think so.”

“That would be wild though. A Mafia roommate….”

“Stop while you’re ahead, Gojyo.”

*******

Gojyo was so deeply absorbed in his weekly Friday night binge-watch of _The Dead Files_ that he didn’t even realize Hakkai had come in the house until the latter was standing behind the couch.

“What is this?” he asked, his voice sending Gojyo flying and the ice cream bowl in his hands toppling to the floor.

“Oh. I’m sorry,” Hakkai apologized. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“It’s all right.” Gojyo wiped the ice cream off his chest with a nearby paper towel. “I guess I’m not quite re-adjusted to having a roommate again. You startled me.”

“Sorry,” Hakkai said again. “Let me help you clean up.”

“You don’t have to…”

“Actually, I do.” Hakkai came around the couch, staying Gojyo’s hand as he swiped at the ever-expanding smear of chocolate running down his shirt. “You’re going to shellack that in permanently if you keep rubbing at it. Never rub a stain. Always dab. Do you have any club soda?”

“Uh, maybe? Try under the sink?”

“If not, just take it off and I’ll throw in the wash. I want to put my clothes in there, too so that my stains don’t set.”

“What kind of stains…” Gojyo trailed off. Hakkai’s back was to him, but he wasn’t in work clothes. Instead, he was in what was becoming a very familiar uniform—long sleeve tee shirt and jeans—-the only difference being today’s were navy blue and black, so Gojyo couldn’t identify anything stain-like from a distance. 

“When did you change?” he asked instead when Hakkai returned with a bottle of club soda and a damp cloth.

“Oh, before I left work. I had some spare casual clothes in my office, so I decided to put them on.”

“No hot date? No make-it-or-break-it business meeting?” Gojyo flinched a little as the cold rag touched his thin shirt. 

“Ah, no. Neither,” Hakkai said. “Actually got out early for once.”

“You got out early and you’re still not home before 10?”

“Well, I had to make a stop on the way back. No big deal, just something I needed to do.” 

“Oh,” Gojyo said, and something in Hakkai’s tone told him that this was his cue to stop prying.

*******

“He had _scratches_ ,” Gojyo hissed. “All over his forearms!” He and Yaone had secluded themselves out back in the alley for their smoke break, away from prying eyes and ears so Gojyo could catch her up on the latest. “He also smelled really weird. Like…wildflowers and river water. It was the oddest combination.”

“I come out of the subway smelling like gunmetal all the time,” Yaone said. “Weird smells are just part of city life. Though what do you mean by scratches? Like, claw marks?”

“Kind of. I dunno, it was hard to tell. He was wearing long sleeves, but I noticed them when he was wiping down my shirt. It was like this combination of red bumps and scarry-looking scrape thingies.”

“Huh.” Yaone exhaled a puff of smoke thoughtfully. “Maybe he fell or something.”

“Or he’d come back from a hit.”

“Gojyo…”

“What? You don’t think it’s weird?”

“I didn't say it wasn’t weird, I’m just saying you might be getting ahead of yourself.”

“But what if I’m right? What should I do?”

“You shouldn’t do anything unless you’re sure. Which you won’t be unless you ask him.”

“Can you do that?” Gojyo looked at her with wide eyes. “Can you just…ask someone if they kill people?”

“If you live with them, and you’re that concerned…yes.” 

“I feel weird.”

“Then obviously you’re not that concerned.” Yaone took a long drag and tapped the ash off the end of her cigarette. “Andre was here by the way. Asking about you. You gonna see him again?”

“Andre? No. We’re one and done.”

“Again?”

“What do you mean again? You know I don’t do commitment. Besides, the new bell hop is really cute, and I can’t get to know him if I’m messing around with Andre.”

Yaone shook her head. “I can’t with you sometimes, you know that?”

“I do.” Gojyo took one last puff and then crushed the butt under his shoe. “Now let’s get back before the boss gives us hell for being late again.”

*********

Gojyo’s curiosity finally got the better of him on a random Wednesday when Hakkai had, once again, come home from work and disappeared. This time, Gojyo didn’t see him, but Hakkai had left a note on the stove telling him there was leftover lasagna in the microwave, and to help himself. This lead Gojyo to logically conclude that his roommate was, indeed, a Mafia hitman because lasagna had to be one of the most iconic Italian dishes there was.

He was in so deep, he was now even eating pasta. 

Gojyo grabbed his coat. It was early September, but the nights already had a late fall chill, and he wasn’t sure how long it would take for him to track down Hakkai. He knew a few places he could go and ask some pointed questions, but getting information wasn’t going to be easy. Still, he was up for the task.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the task was not up for him as he nearly collided with Hakkai in the stairwell, his new roommate holding his arm to his chest, his cheek and right hand covered in blood.

“Holy shit.” Gojyo looked Hakkai up and down. “Hakkai, man. Are you all right?”

“Hm? Oh yes. I’m fine.”

“You…you have blood all over you!”

“Oh, do I?” Hakkai wiped at it absently with a free finger. “I wonder if it’s mine?”

“You…what? Fuck. No. I’m not doing this. We need to get you to a hospital.” Gojyo took off his jacket and wrapped it around Hakkai’s shoulders. “C’mon. I’ll call a cab on the way outside.”

“Gojyo, it’s just a little blood.”

“It’s not a little blood, it’s a lotta blood, let’s _go_.” 

Gojyo steadied Hakkai on his feet. And Hakkai, being the apparently slightly passive-aggressive adult that he was, went liquid like a cat, putting most of his weight on Gojyo’s shoulder. Gojyo’s adrenaline, however, had kicked in, and he carried both of them easily down the stairs and out on to the street.

But then they got to the urgent care clinic. And things got weirder.

“Mr. Cho?” The receptionist behind the desk looked surprisingly unsurprised. “I didn’t expect to see you back here so soon. Another injury?”

“Hello, Celine. And yes, but nothing major. Just some blood.”

“Dr. Sharak isn’t in tonight. Dr. Bosatsu is on duty, is that okay?”

“That’s fine. I’ll see whomever. It’s really not a big deal…”

“It’s a big enough deal for him to come home covered in his own blood,” Gojyo interrupted. “How long until he can get in?”

“Maybe about 20 minutes? There’s a fractured femur in front of you, but the ear infection can wait.”

“If it’s a child, please let them go ahead,” Hakkai tried, but Celine waved him off.

“He’s had some Tylenol with Codeine to kill the pain. It’s re-occurring, so Dr. Bosastsu essentially just has to write a ‘scrip and they can go home. We’ll get you next. Have a seat.”

“Thanks,” Hakkai mumbled. 

He allowed Gojyo to lead him to the hard, uncomfortable waiting-room chairs. And he said nothing for a long time as Gojyo tapped his fingers restlessly against his knee. 

Eventually, he muttered, “You really didn’t have to do this.”

“Uh, yeah, I did.” 

“It’s really not that bad…”

“Please stop with that. You are covered in blood. We haven’t known each other that long, I know, but it’s still my responsibility make sure you are properly taken care of.”

“Why?”

“Why what?” 

“Why is it your responsibility?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Well, It’s not like we’re family.”

“So what? We’re sharing space. We live and eat and shit in extremely close proximity to one another. That’sreason enough to care. Also, I don’t know about you, but I’m not the type who can just ignore another person, especially when they are in distress.” 

“I…no,” Hakkai managed a small smile. “I guess it’s just…I’ve never been showed this much kindness and hospitality by someone who is, for all intents and purposes, little more than an acquaintance.”

“Yeah, well, I have this weird moral issue with fucking over other people just because. There's enough of that in the world. I’ll be fucked if I’ll tolerate that kind of behavior in my own home.”

“You curse a lot.” It wasn’t an accusation. More of an observation. “Did you know that’s a sign of intelligence?”

“Is it? Can you tell that to my boss? Because if I could actually curse out loud at work, it would make my job so much easier.”

Hakkai chuckled behind his uninjured hand, and seemed about to say more, but a woman in a white lab coat appeared in the doorway with a clipboard.

“Cho Hakkai?” Her eyes immediately went to the pair of them. “Considering this chart says adult male, I’m assuming it’s one of the two of you?”

“I’m Cho Hakkai,” Hakkai said, standing. 

“Fantastic. Come with me, please.”

Gojyo watched Hakkai and the lab coat woman disappear through the heavy wooden door marked “patients only.” And he resumed tapping his fingertips against his knee for the uncomfortable stretch of time he waited for Hakkai to return.

When he did, his face was clean, his arm was wrapped from fingertips to elbow in a layer of white gauze, and he looked…woozy.

“I hope you’re driving, Red.” The woman in the lab coat, who Gojyo felt he could now logically assume was Dr. Bosatsu, guided Hakkai across the room and back to him. “This isn’t his first vaccination, but he’s having a bit of an adverse reaction, and I’m going to need to see him again in three days.”

“Because of the reaction?”

“Because a rabies booster requires two doses.”

“I’m sorry…a what?”

“A rabies booster.” Dr. Bosatsu smirked. “I take you’ve never had one?”

“Never felt the need.” Gojyo looked at Hakkai with intense interest. “Do we need an appointment?”

“No, just come by. It’ll take five minutes.” She raised her hand in a wave. “Have a good night, boys. Try not to play so rough next time, okay?”

The doctor moved on to the woman and the sleeping child on the other side of the room. Gojyo used the opportunity to usher Hakkai out the front door. 

It had gotten colder. But it was also now close to midnight, and the street in front of the clinic was much quieter than it had been when they came in. Gojyo used the opportunity, and the absence of a visible taxi, to ask the question that had be gnawing at him since Dr. Bosatsu’s second appearance.

“So, what…” he began.

“The rabies shot?” Hakkai didn’t meet his eyes. “Is that what you’re going to ask about?” 

“Uh, yeah.”

Hakkai sighed. “It was a bite.”

“From _what_?” Gojyo demanded. 

Hakkai was quiet. 

Gojyo pursed his lips. “You’re not going to tell me?” he asked.

“No,” Hakkai said. “I’m going to show you.” He waved down a yellow cab with its lights on. “Delancey and FDR, please,” he said to the driver.

“What’s down there?” Gojyo asked as they got in.

“I’ll show you when we get there.”

They lapsed back into silence, one that remained for the duration of their stop-start drive from uptown to the lower east side, and continued for several minutes after they got out and the taxi departed. But when Hakkai started striding purposefully for the portion of the riverbank under the Williamsburg Bridge, Gojyo spoke up.

“Okay, I’m just going to ask straight up what the hell we’re doing,” he said. “And you’re gonna tell me before we take another step because I’ve heard enough stories about bodies turning up in the East River to be very, very suspect of you right now.” 

“I’m not going to kill you, Gojyo,” Hakkai said. He didn’t stop walking. 

“Yeah, maybe not me, but did you kill someone else? Are you a hitman?”

“Is that what you think?” Hakkai looked back and shook his head. “I’m not a hitman. And I haven’t killed anyone. All the blood you saw tonight was my own, and the reason is down here.”

“You expect me to just blindly believe you when we’re this far outside civilization?”

Hakkai sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Fine,” he said. “If you’re going to be like this, I’ll just tell you. I found a dog.”

“A…dog.”

“Yes. I saw her scavenging maybe a week or so before I moved in with you while I was walking to the subway after a business dinner. I followed her to see if I could get her to come to me, and I found out she had puppies.”

“Puppies.”

“Yes.” 

“And….she bit you?”

Hakkai shrugged. “I got too close. It’s not her fault.”

“Hakkai…”

“Look, Gojyo. I don’t expect you to understand, or even try, but I saw an animal in distress and I’ve been trying to help her ever since. I come by here first thing in the morning, and then every evening after dark to make sure she has food and clean water and that the puppies are doing okay. Tonight, I noticed one had an open sore on it’s front leg, but when I tried to scoop it up, she bit me. I brought it on myself. I probably shouldn’t have tried to touch it.”

“Why didn’t you call someone?” Gojyo asked. “The Humane Society? Animal Control?”

“Because every shelter in this city is filled past capacity, and Animal Control is nothing but a death sentence,” Hakkai replied. “She’s just trying to survive, Gojyo. Just like the rest of us. She deserves a fighting chance.”

It was Gojyo’s turn to sigh. “How many puppies are there?”

“Two. There used to be four, but I’ve only spotted two the last few times I’ve been down here.”

Gojyo nodded. “Show me,” he said at length. “I…want to see.”

Hakkai nodded. They resumed walking through the unkempt scrub until they reached the underside of the bridge. There, Gojyo could see what looked to be a make-shift shelter of sorts, tucked away from the elements, consisting of an open, plastic storage box and some old towels. Inside slept a white dog with two off-white fluffy lumps nestled into her side.

“That might be one of the saddest things I’ve ever seen,” Gojyo said quietly. They stopped well short of where the little family lay, keeping their distance given Hakkai’s previous experience. “How long did you say you’ve been coming down here again?”

“A couple of weeks,” Hakkai said. “Maybe…three at the most?”

Gojyo chewed on the inside of his lip. “I have a friend,” he began after several heartbeats. “Someone who can help us out…”

“I told you, I’m not sending her a shelter!”

“And I heard you, so shut up and listen for a second, okay? I have a friend who used to work at the Bronx Zoo. Nothing major, just a maintenance guy who happened to be really good with frightened animals. He helped calm down ones that were upset, move ones that got sick and stuff, so he’s got a little training in handling things that can be dangerous. I can call him…see if he’ll come pick her up.”

“And then?” Hakkai asked.

“And then, we get her cleaned up and her puppies healthy, and we figure it out from there. I’ve had dogs before, and I’m sure you have, too. The hardest thing is going to be fitting all five of us in one, undersized New York City apartment.”

“Wait. What?”

“Oh come on, Hakkai. You don’t _really_ think you’re the only one who can’t stand to see another living creature suffering in pain, do you? I thought I told you that earlier. There’s enough fucked up shit in the world, and I have no desire to contribute to it.”

Hakkai blinked slowly, then lowered his eyes. “Thank you, Gojyo.”

“Don’t thank me. It’s the right thing to do. I’ll call my guy first thing tomorrow, and see what he says. For now, let’s go home.”

Hakkai nodded, and they made their way up the bank again, deciding it was just as easy to take the subway home as it was to try and hail another cab. 

Once they were back up in the familiar concrete jungle, Gojyo felt comfortable enough to lighten the mood a little bit.

“So what did you name her?” he asked. “Or haven’t you gotten that far?”

“I’ve been calling her Jippu,” Hakkai said. “The little ones don’t have names yet because I’m not sure if they’re male or female.”

“Jippu? Does that mean something?”

“It’s the phonetic translation for ‘Jeep.’ Though if you throw an ’n’ sound on the end of it, it can be a Japanese counter for ‘ten.’”

Gojyo paused. “You seriously have been calling this dog Jeep? Like, the car?”

Hakkai shrugged. “It seemed as good a name as any, don’t you think?”

Gojyo shook his head. “You’re so weird,” he muttered. “It’s a good thing you have me to look after you.”

He kept walking, but behind him, he heard Hakkai chuckle, and he knew in that moment that, weirdo or not, Hakkai was going to be a much, much better roommate and friend than Banri. 

Dogs, after all, were about a thousand times better than a make-shift meth lab in his bathroom.


End file.
